White: What Can The Lakers Do To Improve?

With the Los Angeles Lakers' elimination in 5 games last night to the Phoenix Suns, their frustrations came to a head. Nothing had more impact than Kobe Bryant expressing his desire for the Los Angeles Lakers to improve. "Do it and do it now!" were his exact words. He told the media that it was beyond frustrating in regard to the Los Angeles Lakers' lack of improvement. "Three years and still being at ground zero. This summer's a big summer. We have to see what direction we want to take as an organization and make those steps and make them now," said Kobe.

There are those of you who will say this is what Kobe wanted.

Wrong!

He didn't request to be on a team with no heart, hustle, and desire. He didn't request to be on a team where most of the players should be nailed to the bench. In fact, he didn't ask to be the only star on a team. He just didn't get along with Shaq. And in case you missed it, neither did Penny. It wasn't all Kobe's fault that Shaq was traded. His financial demands had as much to do with it than any. But, that is neither here nor there.

We aren't going to rehash the past. That means, we aren't going to debate if this is how Kobe wanted it and now he can't take the heat. We aren't going to debate about Mitch Kupchak trading Caron Butler for Kwame Brown or should he have pulled the trigger for Ron Artest or Jason Kidd which would have meant giving up Andrew Bynum at the time.

Should he have made those deals? It's debatable. Would Kidd have been the answer? Possibly but for how long considering how much money he makes factored in with his age. Would Ron Artest have been the answer? He didn't help out Sacramento too much this year did he?

The bottom line is, how do the Los Angeles Lakers improve going forward? What are their areas of need?

Time and time again, we hear point guard as an area to target. But is it really?

Games 3 and 4 notwithstanding, Jordan Farmar proved himself very capable of being ready to take over the reins. Although Phil Jackson threatened to start someone in place of Jordan Farmar after those two subpar performances, it was more to motivate Jordan Farmar. Jordan Farmar proved last night be able to handle his own and one can only wonder how well he would have played had he gotten more burn during the regular season. In three of the five games in the series, Jordan Farmar averaged 10 ppg on 52% shooting. At times, he played capable defense on the pick and roll and could have done better had the Los Angeles Lakers bigs been on the same page as him defensively. Are those numbers great? No, but remember, he was playing against the two-time MVP.

The pg spot is more than safe in his hands. A capable backup who doesn't mind his role of coming off the bench is what is needed. Someone who can be more consistent than Smush Parker who has been out the door for some time.

While the Los Angeles Lakers almost to a man said they would like another crack at it with this team, they might not get a chance. "With the success we had early in the season, and then the injuries, we would love another crack at it with everyone back," said Kwame Brown.

Even Lamar Odom felt the team was good enough as constituted to be among the better teams. "We started off great, and then the injuries happened. I don't want to blame the injuries, but I feel we were as good as anybody if we were healthy,' said Lamar. 'Anytime you lose like this, you want to have another chance at it but that is management's decision."

As resilient as Lamar Odom was, playing through all of the injuries, it just wasn't enough to overcome. Lamar has had injury problems every year and as the Los Angeles Lakers' second fiddle to Kobe Bryant, they need him on the court. Luke Walton, a free agent, has also had injury after injury nearly every season as had Kwame Brown. A team as shallow as this can't afford to continually deal with injury issues if they aren't deep enough to overcome them.

The main question though is, can they wait on the development of Andrew Bynum?

There was a time when I would have answered yes to this question. But now, if the right deal comes along and he is requested, you have to send him on his way.

Why?

Because Kobe isn't getting any younger. More importantly, he is still an unknown commodity. Despite the fact that he is a 7-footer with length and agility, I have yet to see the fire. Some players have it, and some don't. He has the confidence, but not the insatiable burning fire that makes one want to dominate. Andrew Bynum may indeed be a star in this league. But, is Kobe willing to wait 3-4 years until he becomes a bust? And what if he never becomes a star. We have seen glimpses of great play, but whose to say when he will put the entire package together. Another thing the Los Angeles Lakers need to consider is that the game is changing a bit. I am not saying that the true back to the basket center is a way of the past, but gone are the days when you can't win without one. More than likely, the winner of this year's NBA Championship will be a team without a true center. Whether it is Dallas, San Antonio, Phoenix, Chicago, or Detroit, none of those teams have a true low post force in the middle.

The last thing the Los Angeles Lakers want to do is let teams lose interest in him as he is still considered a hot prospect.

The other thing to consider in the Andrew Bynum equation is that Phil Jackson has just 1 year left on his contract. Kobe Bryant can opt out in 2 years. Both of them have intimated that they will take a wait and see approach.

All of this falls into the hands of Mitch Kupchak. While Laker fans continually pine for Kevin Garnett, one Laker staffer told me that Minnesota isn't willing to deal him. Now, does that mean deal him to the Los Angeles Lakers, or deal him period? Who knows, but the Los Angeles Lakers can't wave a magic wand and just get who they want. Unfortunately, that is what Laker fans expect because it has happened so many times in the past (see: Chamberlain, Kareem, Shaq, and Kobe). That same Los Angeles Lakers' staffer understood that but said that times are different with the cap. It just isn't that easy.

The Los Angeles Lakers only wish the fans understood that. The fact is, Minnesota has never been under any real pressure to trade KG anyway. Not once has he demanded to be moved. While the speculation from the fans and media is that he wants to/has to go, he hasn't had any real leverage. Couple that with the fact that he is a very loyal person. If KG is moved, it will be based on one of two scenarios. Either he A) demands a trade this summer, or B) indicates sometime next season that he will opt out next summer which will prompt the Wolves to move him at the deadline or risk losing him for nothing. Even still, why would the Wolves move him to any team in the Western Conference? Unless he is specific about wanting to go to LA, the Wolves would look to move him east. Barring him bringing back a superstar like Shawn Marion or Amare Stoudemire along with two of the Suns' three draft picks, I would be shocked to see him moved west.

What should the Los Angeles Lakers do then?

If I knew, I would be getting the big bucks from some NBA team.

The logical move would be going after Jermaine O'Neal. According to him, he has an opt out this summer. He could threaten to opt out if not moved.

A trade, sending Lamar Odom, Vlad Radmanovic, and Andrew Bynum to the Pacers along with a first round draft pick for Jermaine O'Neal and Jamaal Tinsley works under the cap. The Los Angeles Lakers could then use the MLE to sign a player such as Chris Webber as well as re-signing Chris Mihm for $1-2 million if he is healthy, and Luke Walton. The Los Angeles Lakers' depth chart would look like this:

C: Kwame Brown, Mihm, Webber
PF: O'Neal, Turiaf
SF: Walton, Evans
SG: Bryant, Sasha
PG: Jordan Farmar, Tinsley, Williams

While the Los Angeles Lakers will still have some holes, they will have a solid superstar next to Kobe Bryant as well as a more than capable backup for Jordan Farmar.

Would Indiana be willing to go for something like that? They would be able to get out of Tinsley's contract, get a young player with lots of potential in Andrew Bynum, and get a guy in Odom who can add more versatility. Another thing to remember is that Odom had his best years while playing in the Eastern Conference and a return might serve him well.

If the Los Angeles Lakers really want to get bold, they can also send Kwame Brown in return for Mike Dunleavy Jr. Dunleavy would give the Los Angeles Lakers a perfect triangle player. One who can handle the rock, shoot the mid range jumper, and play multiple positions. A deal like that only works if you know that Mihm is going to be healthy. Indy coveted Kwame Brown when he was available in Washington and might look to add him if even for one season. With the Los Angeles Lakers first rounder at #20, along with Indy's pick, they could add a couple of young studs. With Odom, and Kwame Brown coming off the books in a few years, they would be able to rebuild from scratch around Andrew Bynum, Granger, and whomever else they pick up in the draft.

While the Los Angeles Lakers could be sacrificing future in getting rid of Andrew Bynum, they could put themselves back in the NBA elite for the next 4-6 years. Both O'Neal and Kobe Bryant are under 30 and playing with a superstar could allow both of their careers to flourish into their 30's. The Los Angeles Lakers could worry about rebuilding once Kobe Bryant and O'Neal are near the end of their respective careers.

The question is, will Jim Buss be willing to give up the player he handpicked in the draft two years ago? If his ego is too big to be willing to trade the player he considers his first prominent move, then you could expect Phil and Kobe to hit the road.

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